Looking further into Copyright - Registering Art and Design.

The point of researching this is to copyright my work before I show it to publishers and get feedback where the designs could be stolen. So I have looked further into how to copyright, and how much it would cost.

Fact sheet P-26: Registering art and design work

1. What to register 
2. When registering copyright artwork you should submit copies of the work as evidence of the content of your creations. Do not send the original artwork. Your submission simply needs to be adequate to record the nature, content and design of your work, and what you actually submit will depend on the type of work you are registering.
   
   1. Artwork, plans or designs produced or stored electronically. If the work exists as a computer file, then submitting a copy of the computer file is normally the best option. If the artwork was created using a software package that stores files in a proprietary format that cannot be opened by other applications, it may be advisable to include a version exported to a more common format (such as a PDF JPEG/JPG, PNG, SVG, TIFF, MS Office, etc.) to ensure future readability.
   2. Technical drawings, plans or designs on paper/printed materials. For work that only exists on paper, if it possible to scan the work to an electronic format or take photos using a digital camera, the image files from your scanner or camera can be submitted during online registration or on a CD/DVD or USB flash drive with a postal application.
      Work can also be submitted either as hardcopy prints, photos, or photocopies if a postal application form is used.
   3. Physical artwork, paintings, drawings, etc.If the work is a flat physical item such as a small painting you may be able to use a scanner to convert it to an electronic file.
      For most other items it is best to photograph your work using a digital camera and submit the image files. One picture should show the entire work and close ups of any detail not clear in the main photo can be included if needed. It is a good idea to include something in the images that gives an idea of scale; a person or a ruler are common choices.
      Work can also be submitted either as hardcopy prints/photos, or photocopies if a postal application form is used.
   4. 3D work like sculpture, jewellery, etc.For three dimensional items you should include photographs or plans of the work. Photographs are perfectly adequate to record the nature, content and design of your work and are an ideal way to register 3D items.
      There should be images showing the complete work from each angle; i.e. one from the front and back, plus sides if needed. You should also include close ups of any detail that is not clear in the main photos. It is a good idea to include something in one or more of the images that gives an idea of scale (i.e. a ruler). For small items it is fine to include several items in the same photograph.
      Copies of any plans/designs or technical drawing detailing the work are also acceptable.
      
3. How to register. Copyright registration can be carried out either online or by postal application.
   Online registration is cheaper and will provide immediate cover for your work.
   If there is a large amount of data, or if you have a slow or unreliable Internet connection, you may wish to consider a postal application instead.
   
   1. Registering by postal application. If registering by post - simply send the copy of your work either on CD, DVD, USB drive or as paper copies with your application form and payment.
   2. Registering online. During online registration you will be asked to upload the files that make up your work.
      If you have a lot of files we strongly recommend that you take the following steps:
      • Create a directory on your computer to temporarily store the files.
      • Copy the files/images you wish to upload to the directory you just created.
      • Use an application such as WinZip, WinRar/Rar, 7-Zip, StuffIt, or Tar to create an archive file (i.e. a .zip or .tar.gz file) from the directory (so you now have a single archive file containing your work).
      • Upload this archive file when prompted during the online registration process.
      We will accept any type of compressed archive files, although we recommend that a non-proprietary format (i.e. .zip, .tar.gz) is used. As with all electronic files you should choose common formats to ensure that software to read the files will be available in the future.
      Please be patient while uploading as most domestic ADSL lines will upload at around 1-2MB/minute, see our upload advice page for more details.
      
4. A collection of related pieces may be a single work. Sometimes a work may in fact be a number of items that are part of a larger project. For example a range of jewellery designs or a range of card designs. It is quite normal for designers to register a collection of designs as a single work and therefore pay one registration fee for the collection. In such cases you would simply enter a single title for the collection as a whole as the ‘title of work’ on the application form and submit all the designs that are part of that collection when registering.
   It is also possible to add updates to a registration as a project evolves over time (i.e. if new designs are added to an already registered range of card designs). Updates to an already registered work are charged at a reduced rate, for more details please see our Updating Copyright Registrations fact sheet.
   
5. Common questions
   1. What resolution should images be for registration?The resolution of the image does not really matter. You should simply ensure that the resolution is high enough to clearly show the content you are seeking to register.
   2. Is registration also evidence of design rightsYes, though there are two types of design right, a ‘registered’ and ‘unregistered’ design right.
      A registered design right (which covers the work for a longer period) can be applied for at national level, typically via the national Patent Office of the country in question.
      Unregistered design rights are automatic (just like copyright) so a registration with ourselves will be evidence of the unregistered design right in the same way that it is evidence of copyright.
   3. What is the best format for images?JPG/JPEG files are a good format to use for images as they are generally smaller files, (due to compression), and can be read by most applications.

I would register my work online, looking at point 3 as it all would be "A collection of related pieces may be a single work." So I looked into the link of how to update and add to registered work, if I wrote new comics and character that needed to be added.

Updating Copyright Registrations

1. When should an update be used? An update should be used if you have already registered a work, but the work has significantly changed since registration.
   Perhaps you revised or continued to develop significant content, or had a rewrite. If you want this new content to also be included in the registration, this should be added as a registration update.
   Of course, you may never need to make an update, but if yours is work which is updated regularly, (web sites are a good example), or is subject to re-writes, (such as manuscripts, screenplays and other documents), and this facility can prove very helpful.
 

2. How do registration updates work?Registration updates are perhaps best thought of as a ‘mini’ registrations that can be added to an existing registration. Each update has its own individual record of date and content, but it also shares the main registration number and expiry date.
   The date and content of the main registration remains on record, while each update forms a separate item of evidence with its own date and information.  
3. What are the advantages?Because new versions (updates) can be added without the need for separate registration, there are several advantages:
   1. Easy to manage:Using the update facility, you only have one registration per work, regardless of how many times you update that work or how much it changes.
   2. Reduced cost:As the initial administration has been completed, updates are generally much cheaper than new registrations, also, at the end of the registration period, you only have one registration to renew to continue cover for the work.
   3. Proof of evolution of your work:As each deposit is individually recorded, from the point of registration through to the last update, a full record of the evolution of the work is available if you ever need to prove your claim in a dispute.
    
4. Is there a fee for processing updates?Yes, we must treat every submission as a separate item of evidence with its own chain of custody, and process it accordingly. There is always a processing fee, but typically updates are much cheaper that new registrations. Additionally, the financial transaction itself leaves its own audit trail and provides another layer of verifiable evidence.
   The current update fees are:
   1. Online registration updatesThe current charge for updates via our online upload facility is £17.00 per work.
   2. Registration updates via postal applicationThe administration charge for postal updates is £24.00 per work.
      Media types that involve additional processing will also incur an additional fee to cover the extra time involved in processing these types of works. Please see our registration format pages for details on accepted media types and fees.
    
5. NotesAn update can only be made to a work that is already registered. If your work has not been registered, or for new work not related to an existing registration, please register via the standard copyright registration facility.
   The online update facility as well as postal update forms can be accessed via the copyright registration update pages of this site. 

1. Common questions
   1. When I submit an update will it overwrite files I have already submitted?
   No. Every submission it treated as a separate deposit of evidence with its own date and reference, nothing is ever overwritten.
   2. Do I have to submit the whole work again every time I update?If only a specific part of the work has changed, it is fine to just submit the new/changed part(s).
   3. What should I enter in the ‘new title’ field?If the main title for the work a whole that is shown on your last certificate is no longer correct enter the new title for your work here, otherwise you should leave this blank.
   
   I then looked into how much this would cost, as so far they have avoided how pricey this will be. the answer was here:
   

   Online processing fees

   1. Copyright registration The current charges for online registration are £39.00 for 5 years or £64.00 for 10 years per work.
   2. Registration updates The current charge for updates via our online upload facility is £17.00 per work.
   3. Duplicate certificates & sheets of registered notice labels The current administration charge for duplicate certificates and registered notice labels is £3.00.
      Sheet of labels are £2.00 each, and certificates are £2.00 each.
      Delivery is FREE for the UK, Isle of Man and Channel islands, £1.00 for Europe and £2.00 for the rest of the World.
   4. Duplicate work £25.00 per work.
   
   This was very frustrating, as I do not know if this means if I copyrighted my work online, for 5 years, it might be £39.00 per page of each comic, which could cost thousands of pounds I do not have. Following this, I looked into the websites definition of "registering collections of related items."
   

   Registering collections of related items

We are often asked if it is possible to register a collection of related copyright works as a single item, and therefore only pay a single registration fee.
Typical examples would be:

• Collections of poetry.
• An number of music tracks, i.e. an album, EP, demo, etc. containing multiple songs.
• Collections of photographs.
• Card designs.
• Other collections of artwork, drawings etc.

The simple answer is ‘Yes’, it is certainly possible to include a number of related works as a single registration, provided the following conditions are met.

1. The items being submitted together should make sense to you as a single projectFor example, if you were registering a music album as a single work, it would be normal to include any of the following:
   
   • The songs themselves (i.e. audio recordings).
   • Artwork for the cover and inlay card.
   • Lyrics used on the album.
   • Supporting documents, such as musical score, notation, midi files, etc. that directly relate to the songs on the album.
   You should not include items that are not directly related to the work being registered. Unrelated items should be treated as such and registered separately.
   The registration should reflect reality - if there are really two works there should be two registrations.
   
2. A registration can only have a single title.As a registration may only have a single title - The ‘title of work’ on the application form, you should therefore choose an overall title that describes the collection as a whole.
   In our example of a music album, it would be normal for the work title on the registration form to be the album title, (not a list of song titles).
   The individual titles of separate items, (if they have titles), would become part of the content of the overall registration. The registration title should be regarded as a simple ‘one liner’ that means something to you and will identify the work to you.
   There is also an ’additional information‘ area on the application form where you can enter extra information to help you identify the items deposited if you need to.
   
3. The copyright ownership of all the items submitted together should be the same.If this is not practical, then all owners should agree to the submission and we would recommend that a separate record of individual ownership is kept by the registrant detailing the individual assignment of rights.

To register a collection of related items under a single registration, simply enter a single collective title (i.e. the album/EP title) as the ‘title of work’ on the application form, and treat the collection as a single.

So here I have learnt I can upload a whole project of characters and stories, names and titles as a single project, and wouldn't be charged for each individual page. To be sure I am right, I have sent a question to the UK Copyright Service asking if I am so. The question can be seen in this Screenshot:

I later received this e-mail response:

I am now sure of how I can upload my work to copyright and ensure its is protected, at minimal cost.

All this information cal be found at these links: http://www.copyrightservice.co.uk/register/p26_howto_register_artwork & http://www.copyrightservice.co.uk/account/p17_registration_updates & http://www.copyrightservice.co.uk/services/price_list & http://www.copyrightservice.co.uk/services/knowledge-base/kb_collections

Case Study 3: An analysis of Crumbs work, and a study into why he produces such work using: The Robert Crumb Handbook.

 When Robert Crumb made a majority of his work, it was post- comics code, meaning most comics were heavily censored. So was Crumb deliberately being provocative with his art? With hippy culture and subdued sexual thoughts being new parts of public knowledge and acceptable in this “free love era” maybe Crumb was testing the boundaries. Crumb was producing new art that had never been scene before in comics. It was arguably too obscene, but undeniably a thought provoking subject that is debatable.

In a self portrait illustrated comic (as often seen in his work) The adventures of R. Crumb himself, The writer/artist creates a story in which he goes for an innocent walk, is caught by a Nun, beaten up by a college professor, police officer and a gangster, who then pull this trousers off  and hold him up as the Nun attempts to castrate him. He then takes the axe from the nun, decapitates her with it, buys a bomb, blows up a school, and changes the name from “school of hard knocks” to “school of hard knockers.” Which then shows him put his arms around two school girls, pants off still with genitalia on show and says” where do I sign up” with a note on the bottom saying “So I’m a male chauvinist pig...Nobody’s perfect.”- P181-184

All this may symbolise his fear of certain things (he never went to college, had a strong catholic upbringing he no longer follows) that he thinks about on a daily basis, and castration being a biggest fear (as sex seems to be extremely important to him and the main focus of most of his work and writing.) It would then symbolise his letting go of those fears and embracing his true desire to be “A male chauvinist pig” or perhaps that is a sarcastic comment, what a critic has said of him previous.

From viewing his art, you could argue that Crumb seems to be sexually obsessed. And it would be hard to argue otherwise. “In those early strips such as Fritz Bugs Out I was making fun of the pseudo Jack Kerouc college boy (embodied in Richard Farina’s ridiculous book, Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up to Me)-the black-turtle-neck-sweater kind of guy who contrived a worldly, vagabond hipster image that would attract young, romantic, middle class girls from fine homes. I was very bitter, observing how well this act went over with the girls. I knew for certain I was much more an interesting artist than this abstract expressionist painter I knew in Cleveland, who painted giant eight foot canvases that were nothing but ugly brown smears.... The worst! But he was handsome, rugged, hale fellow who wore a big scalf around his neck over a shaggy sweater. He would stand there starring at his big muddy mess of a painting, while women brought him cups of coffee. There were always young, attractive women lounging around his studio wanting to get his attention. He had a swashbuckling aura around himself that made him supremely successful with women. It wasn’t about his “art” at all” P129

 

Crumb writes out of jealously and bitterness, seemingly only caring about the women and sex he could be getting, angry that he isn’t. Objectifying them to the sense that they like this expressionist painter not for his ability as an artist but for his looks, and with no mention of his personality, almost like it is up to him who’s art they should and shouldn’t like, (forgetting that art is largely opinion and many people see it in different ways.) He even insults poetry because of his lack of sexual intimacy. “When I was young, drawing comic books had no sex appeal whatsoever. Any silly assed poet attracted women more than drawing comics.”-129.  Perhaps these women did like the painter for his looks and money, maybe they really were that shallow, or perhaps saw an easy life in a time when it was only just becoming possible for women to pursue their own career’s and leapt at the opportunity to be with a young handsome, successful painter. But it seems a harsh judgement to make either way, and not really his place to decide who they should like and why. Crumb already looks to be a strange man.

He says he has always liked the built of bigger, larger, stronger women. “I dreamed of strong women. My sexuality has been rather quirky ever since (watching Sheena), in a state of arrested development and it makes me want to have my way with big, strong, powerful women. I don’t know why, I just do.” -  P94. Crumb once drew this type of body he describes with a baby face in Mr Natural; On The Bum Again, and illustrates an old man having sex with this in graphic detail. Poplaski defends this as it is a caricature of Crumb’s former girlfriend, so it’s okay. It’s ‘art.’ 

“Comment on R. Crumbs hard Satire Fair warning: For Adult intellectuals only! 
 Joseph Campbell, the scholar of mythology, once complained that people don’t know what a metaphor is so, for these people, a myth is a lie. Many of Robert Crumb’s readers and their police departments don’t understand what a metaphor is either. As a result, Crumbs hard satire comic stories are treated as obscenities. “Angelfood McSpade” becomes blatent Racism. “Joe Blow,” a satire on family values and parental influence, becomes an incest story. “Mr Natural and the Big Baby” is child Molestation, whereas actually, the Big Baby is a caricature of one of Crumb’s girlfriends from his hippy days” – P260

Similarly Poplaski defends “Joe Blow” (1969) from being and incestual story as it’s a metaphor for parental influence among their children. “Joe Blow,” a satire on family values and parental influence, becomes an incest story”. However, again, what Crumb draws is highly graphic incest and paedophilia, metaphorical and satire or not, that is the imagery. 

 It seems naked children, paedophilic and incestual like illustrations are acceptable in fine art (also see Branzino, A. (1545) Venus, Cupid, Fully of Time, left). But if a mainstream comic company, or Graphic Novel, tried to do a similar thing, they get ridiculed for it, even if it was to make a villain look evil, or being used as a metaphor. Is this because they have a younger child audience at times? I have never seen this type of illustration in a Graphic Novel. Crumb states he never had an audience he was aiming at: “Who did I think I was appealing too? I don’t know. I was just being a punk, putting down pen on paper all these messy parts the culture we internalize and keep quite about. I admit I was occasionally embarrassed when I look at some of the work now.”- P256. He brags “punk” like it’s a fashion to be new, exciting, different and daring. This is true, those qualities can be admired and in the 1960’s early 70’s, it was a growing fashion. But does bragging about his “punk” drawings allow paedophilia and incest to become okay? Because you’re being different, or metaphorical? Because it causes debates and critiques the culture or ‘system.’ Would this be okay in mainstream television and comics? If these subjects appeared as often as Crumb brings them up? I don’t think so. I think alot of Crumb’s work relies on shock value and the fact no one else produced art like him. (Probably for good reason.)

He uses the same pose he fantasised about as a 14 year old boy for a panel in The Brat (1970) and Mr. Natural on the Bum again (1970), possibly influenced, consciously or not, from John Stanley’s Little Lulu of the late 1940’s. Crumb tells the audience he fantasised about a position like this as a fourteen year old boy (P246), with no mentioned link to Little Lulu. Did crumb get his inspiration and rape like sexual thoughts from comics he read as his young self? He even went on to illustrate the scene he fantasised about as a comic where ‘The Brat, the little snot deserves everything she gets!” where a school girl attempts to give a handjob to a older man in the park, before getting stuck in a fence and spanked with a bit of wood, while the man smirks.  Normally I would consider this a mickey take of sorts and a representation of how young girls are represented in society, or the dangers of some people who view them sexually, but it seems Crumb is one of those people as has admitted this position as a sexual fantasy, and makes the comic somewhat paedophilic and grotesque, not as metaphorical as he and his defenders persuade. 

Putting into context the time of when Crumb wrote these (1969 – 1970) Crumbs says this was a time (on his Depression graph P442 - 443) as “Hippy-L.S.D Phase!” during his marriage to Dana (1964, p119), his first L.S.D trip and the birth of his first son. Did these drugs and his feeling trapped of marriage, and escape to taste freedom (1967, p227) affect and influence his work? Feeling the need to explore freedom in his art, in every sense of the word? “I had just turned twenty-one when Dana and I got married (in 1964), and as early as six weeks into our extended European honeymoon I started feeling trapped. At one point I had to leave Dana in Zurich for a few days to travel down to southern Switzerland to look at an apartment for us in Locarno. As I was about to leave she suddenly started to cry like a child being abandoned. I remember gazing at her in shock and amazement, feeling both pity and fear at the level of her neediness.” - P119 he mentions (harsly) Dana acting like a needy child. Was she the inspiration Poplaski says Big Baby had?

He admits he left his wife Dana without even telling her and hitched a ride to San Fransisco with strangers to pursue casual, uncomplicated, loveless sex. “One night in January 1967, over drinks in a bar, two young guys I knew vaguely said they were driving to San Francisco that very night. “Hey, room for one more?” I asked. “Yeah sure! Come with us,” they said.  So I went impulsively from workaday of Cleveland to the hippy Mecca of San Francisco, wearing what clothes I had on and with whatever money I had in my pocket. I didn’t tell Dana., I just wanted my freedom... and to get in on some of that “free love” we were hearing about in the Midwest. I was selfish, I admit it.” - P227.

It becomes hard to compliment the work of a man who draws horrifically strange pornographic comics, leaves his wife without even telling her, and comes across extremely jealous, insecure, disturbed and twisted. So how does Crumb defend his work? Poplaski tells us: “Crumb Himself told the press in 1976: “people have no idea of the sources for my work. I didn’t invent anything; it’s all there in the culture; it’s not a big mystery. I just combine my personal experience with classic cartoon stereotypes.” It seems a hard connection to make with some of his work, that these events are primarily in culture and he doesn’t make them up specifically when you can link Little Lulu to his own fantasies, to work he produces such as The Brat, where of the same scene happens to an underage girl. Does this mean he is aware of the Little Lulu comic that bares similarity? Is this Little Lulu comic part of “culture” he just “combines his personal experiences” (the fantasy) to produce “The Brat.” Crumb has defended that the girl in The Brat is ment to be of age, but it’s very hard to believe him looking at his record of illustrations and the fact she doesn’t look a day over 12. I personally she is intentionally made to look very young, and there is no reason she needed to be, so Crumb tries to defend his work with a blatant lie. Crumb writes “I was lucky to be part of the “underground comix” thing in which cartoonists were completely free to express themselves. To function on those terms means putting everything out in the open – no need to hold anything back – total liberation from censorship, including the inner censor!”- P256. Dose “total liberation from censorship, including the inner censor!” mean he drew his deepest and most twisted desires? Letting go from his “inner censor” telling him his thoughts were wrong? Dose he write "We really like drawing dirty cartoons, it helps us get rid of pent-up anxieties and repressions and all that kinda stuff.." (below) because those repressions are paedophilic and illegal?  He writes ecstatic about the ability to draw whatever he wants. This is understandable. At a time when all comics were heavily censored being able to draw whatever you wanted however you wanted would be every artist’s dream. So why, with all options open, not a limit in sight, did Crumb settle with an ongoing theme of paedophilia. I faintly understand his monkey faced drawings of black women being a point of throwing racist stereotypes in people’s faces, however vile the images are. But I don’t quite get his obsession with drawing graphic underage women willingly engaging in sexual intercourse or being raped. Of all the subjects an artist could draw, of all the stories an artist could tell, Robert Crumb writes and draws disgusting imagery about his deepest twisted desires that he can hide behind in the name of “art.

Crumb, R.  &  Poplaski, P (2005) The R. Crumb handbook London.  MQ Publications

Case Study 2: Feminism, sexism, and challenging the conventional Marvel comic: Alias, The Secret Origin of Jessica Jones,

- Printed under Marvel’s Max imprint, meaning it is not for children!

 

Jessica Jones is shown as an average school girl (and drawn as such) who has a crush on Peter Parker, who is too busy with a crush on the prettier Liz Allen to notice her. The art is used well here, intentionally resembling the work of Steve Ditko, the artist who first drew Spider-man, as it is purposefully a flash back to this exact time period and scene. She is then scene masturbating to a picture of the human Torch, of the Fantastic Four, when her brother walks in to her embarrassment. (Making her seemingly more relatable and real). The next day in the car on a trip to Disneyworld, her brother teases her for this, causing an argument between the siblings in the back seat distracting their dads driving causing him to crash into ‘experimental material,’ probably radioactive, an almost mickey take of the overused-way Marvel give their heroes powers, but none the less fits into this world. This kills her family and send her into a coma. Upon awakening Jessica returns to her normal life being bullied at school. After running home upset that Peter only now talks to her, in pity, she realises she is in the air, flying. She falls into the ocean when Thor saves her. (Note here the importance of Thor being male). He then says “young maiden of Midgard, thy language leaves something to be desired” after she curses trying to catch her breath. Thor saves her, but still insults her before leaving abruptly. 

 

We come to the present (where the art is more realistic and gritty in the sense of anatomy, colour and clothing), when Jessica gets a phone call from ‘The Purple Man’s (Killgrave)” victim’s families asking her for a favour, she looks horrified and throws up. She goes to meet the families and they ask her to make Killgrave admit to all the murders he committed by taking over people’s minds, and not just the ones he was found guilty of. She agrees due to the families hopeful stares. She wakes up to find she was at Luke Cage’s house, drunk, threw up all over herself and made a fool of herself at his house, hurting is feelings in a drunken rant. She goes on to tell her why exactly she quit being a superhero.

Jessica tells of when she was the superhero Jewel, (the art now in the classic style of Marvel comics), when she attempted to sort out a fight he caused he grasps her in his mind control, ordering her to remove her clothes. She is about to, before he then orders her to ‘take care of the police that are arriving”, as he wants to enjoy his meal. Unable to do otherwise, without freewill, she does so.  He keeps her for eight months, where though he never raped her, he tortured her mentally through humiliation. He would (in the words of Jessica) “he made me fucking stand there and watch him fuck other girls. Telling me to wish it was me. Telling me to cry while I watched...He would make me beg him for it. He would just sit there and at his request I would beg him for it, I would beg him to fuck me, I would beg him ‘till I cried...Eight months. I lay at his feet. I slept on his floor. I bathed him.” The evil villain told he did this in revenge for when other heroes had defeated him in the past, this was his revenge on the superhero.  Her family and friends didn’t even realise she was gone for this time. 

 

Back to the superhero and colourful illustrations show The Purple man telling Jessica to “put on her stupid fucking slut costume” and kill the Avengers, or “ any costume fuck” who gets in her way.

She unwillingly and uncontrollably heads to the Avengers Mansion, and after knocking out the Scarlet Witch, is attacked by the Avengers.  The Scarlet Witches’ partner Vision punches her in the face, just before Warbird (note a female Superhero) saves her and carries her away before the Avengers can do any more damage. Jessica says her “neck was messed up. My nose was broken. Lost some teeth. I did some damage to my spine, and my retina detached.” Sending her into a coma shes says doctors said  it was brought on more by the mental trauma than physical. “The Purple man mind fuck. The Avengers assbeating. The physical stress of the whole thing.” 

This shows that when all the male Avengers went to attack Jessica, with an angry violent husband punching her, it was only the female member Warbird who saved her from them, who did the right thing. It also doesn’t shy away from violence. Average comics (especially Marvel) show violence so regularly without consequence it becomes the norm. Here, one punch from a superhuman had devastating effects. Even earlier in the comic Thor simply pulled her out the water, not really comforting her or staying long to see if she was alright, showing a somewhat cold and half-arsed view of the male superhero. On the subject on gender, in is psychic hero Jean Grey (could have been male hero Charles Xaiver, who has the same power) but it is female hero Jean Grey who helps Jessica out of the coma. When she awakes, Jean tells her she has gotten rid of all traces of The Purple Man’s mind control, and that Daredevil has got The Purple man behind bars.  

She then turns up to the Avengers mansion, to apologize for her actions when Scarlet Witch (female heroine) says sympathetically, “well you were hardly to be blamed for that,” while the male heroes involved in the confutation remain quite, their body language looking uncomfortable at her presence. Perhaps unable to admit their wrong doing in a violent attack against the innocent Jessica. Nick Fury, offers her a job at S.H.I.E.L.D, saying “You’re perfect for it, what you went through..and you came out the other side in one piece?.. You’re a survivor, and a fighter, and we need you on our team.” These words could  echo to an audience who have been through difficult times of mental and or physical stress to give them compliment, and applaud their strength, and even find Jessica more relatable than she already is; a girl who was over looked in high school, fantasying about good looking members of the opposite sex, arguing with her little brother, sexually oppressed and humiliated by men, drinks to cope with bad memories. She is also often lacked sympathy from her ‘heroes’ and question whether their always doing the right thing, something many people find when looking up at their childhood heroes; everyone’s human.  .She is not only relatable for women, but also men could find alot of these qualities relatable. 

She refuses Fury’s offer, asking if it’s a ‘pay off’ and doubting his saying of she has what it takes, saying “did you see what happened to me, that is the result of having the opposite of what it takes.” showing insecurity, self blame and even more relatable qualities people feel when their down. She quits the superhero gig, and hangs up her costume. 

 We come back to present day, where she just finishes explaining this to Luka Cage, her former lover. He says he will take care of this Purple man thing, what the victims families have asked her to do (being the caring and protective man that he is.) She says she has to do it, and he respects that; “good for you.”

In a creepy confrontation with the Purple man (in jail) the Purple man seems well aware he is in a comic book, constantly breaking the fourth wall. “Well if it isn’t my favourite comic book character of all time.” He even goes on to describe the panels as they are layed out. “Interior shot. Jail. Day. Jessica Jones...the ex-costumed super-hero, now private eye, comes face-to-face with her greatest foe, her worst nightmare...the Killgrave, the Purple Man. Tight shot on Jessica. She stares blankly, Trying not to give Killgrave the satisfaction of how much this confrontation is getting to her, But her eyes are glassy with held back tears. Her quivering lip betrays her.” All of this is identical to the comic page layout, apart from the expression of Jessica’s face. She doesn’t look scared or intimidated by the Purple Man anymore. In a uncomfortable few sentences the Purple man says “I wouldn’t flip to the back of the book, something really bad is going to happen to you Jessica. I wouldn’t turn to the end. Something really terrible happens.” She doesn’t get the confession she came for. 

 

Upon returning home she finds out that there has been a break out of a maximum security prison and the Purple Man has escaped. Soon the Purple man has the street in a ful scale riot after he demands everyone to kill each other.  Jessica is present, and though the Avengers are there, it is a psychic projection of Jean Grey that tells Jessica there is a psychic trigger in her mind that can make her immune to the Purple Man’s orders, all she has to do is choose to switch it on. She dose, and when thePurple man demands she break Captain America’s back “Do it now whore!” She punches the Purple Man in the face, and beats him senseless, to which the Avengers compliment her, “Oh my god, Oh my Jessica! You did it! Look at you” as she cries over Warbird’s shoulder, seemingly thinking that these violent actions shouldn’t be so well congratulated, and maybe the ‘World’s Mightiest Heroes” are a bit too comfortable with these horrific acts of violence, or perhaps she cries because revenge didn’t give her the satisfaction she had hoped for, and it didn’t make the pain go away. Perhaps both? 

The story concludes with Jessica telling Luke she is pregnant (something that has been hinted at, and that Luke is the father, but not before he has already told her he’s developed emotional feelings for her. Luke appears happy at the news, asks her is she wants to keep it to which she says “Very, very, very much.” He responds “alright then, New Chapter.” This scene is drawn and uses colour, location, dialogue and expression including body language to make the scene the right amount of awkward, touching, and relatable to anyone who’s had to tell someone how they feel about them, and putting those fragile yet strong emotions free to their knowledge hoping for the same in response, and how tense and happy that atmosphere can feel, like butterflies in the stomach. 

 This comic is incredible. The art is reminiscent of the time period of comics that is meant to be set in, making the character of Jessica feel like she has always existed in the Marvel universe and she has simply always been overlooked, just as she is throughout the comic by all except Luke Cage, Jean Grey and Warbird. The art during her superhero days looks more sexist in terms of body structure and anatomy of Jessica, perhaps a dig at the sexist view of women in popular superhero comics, or the view in which The Purple Man see’s her. Though I would argue The Purple Man doesn’t see Jessica as a object of sexual desire, despite him calling her “Pretty,” but more of a object he wants to hurt as she labels herself a superhero, and it is his hate for crime fighters that makes him want to subdue, mentally and physically torture, and belittle her, (hence constantly calling her a “slut” or “whore” and making her his slave, but never have sex with her, despite making her beg for it.) I think this shows The Purple Man hates Jessica, not for who she is, but what she stands for as a superhero, and because of his past defeats by crime fighters wants to make himself feel better by making one admire him in every way. 

It confronts the violence so passively used in comics, by showing its devastating effects. It also shows is a rare comic that shows a female lead who is character full, relatable, not sexist in any way and defeats the oppressing male villain. Karen Healey writes in her essay titled The Secret Origins of Jessica Jones: Multiplicity, Irony and a Feminist Perspective on Brian Michael Bendis’s Alias that:

“Jessica’s final triumph over Killgrave is enabled by Jean [Grey]’s act of sisterhood and activated through her own agency. Moreover, Killgrave’s prophecy that “something really bad will happen to you” is denied. Jessica’s secret origin insertion into continuity is not punished, but redeemed by her win. Jessica’s victory, then is not only satisfying in the comic book terms of good triumphing over evil, but a symbolically feminist blow against the controlling, all-knowing patriarchy in suitably superheroic terms.”

 I agree with Healey on this point, though I would like to have seen Jessica to pick up her Superhero mantle once again, and not let it be ruined by The Purple Man’s villainy, because then, ultimately, he won. He got rid of one more superhero in the world. Yes Jessica is still a private eye and helps people, and arguably this end shows that the male’s view and representation of women in the mainstream media can seriously damage women’s confidence and create perverse demented men who expect women to do whatever they say. Perhaps the villain of The Purple Man is meant to be a metaphor. But I would have loved to see Jessica Jones be strong enough to overcome his evil and re-take up the mantle of Jewel. Though it is a very arguable (and a good, valid point) that it was not The Purple Man that made her quit, but more the overly violent, “attack first as questions later” actions of her would be co-workers The Avengers that lost her faith in Superheroes. Roz Kaveny writes in Superheroes! Capes and crusaders in comics and film “The Superhero world failed to save her, and then it nearly killed her....healing takes time and not conveniently at the end of a three dollar issue.” 

I had heard of Jessica Jones before, but never really looked into her story as I wasn’t as interested in detective stories as much as superhero ones, (which is partly why I’d like to see Jessica’s return as Jewel.) I understand that these two genre’s of detective stories and superhero ones cross over alot, (in such characters as Rorschach and even Batman being labelled The world’s greatest detective! starting out in detective comics. But would audience’s read Batman’s comic’s if never put the cowl on and solved cases and Bruce Wayne? Was it not the moral ambiguity and wearing of the cowl that made him different and exciting?) But perhaps superheroes are so over-done that Jessica’s story is reverting to the old ways of no masks, as it’s more original these days. But maybe it’s my narrow-mindedness that I’d rather have a costumed super powered crime fighter in stories and not the fault of this extremely well thought about, relatable, strong character in Jessica Jones.

Kaveny states that “Jessica’s arc has to do with her accepting she is a flawed human being, whether she identifies as a superhero or not, which is to say that she moves towards the complexity of life in Marvel, and away from the shiny idealism of her earlier shinier model of being a superhero (Jewel) which was partly a critique of Marvel’s early days, and even more of a critique of their major rival DC.” Understanding Kaveny’s point, I would still like to see to see Jewel back in action, dealing with these conflicted emotions, disliking the Avengers and mainstreams heroes, constantly uncertain of if what she does (and superhero-ing in general) is right, and attempting to deal with super-villians in a more defensive than aggressive manor, and seeing where that could lead our heroine. Dose this give her conflict with heroes when they fight villains, making her not on either side but better than both? Is she strong enough not to loose her temper when fighting villains that have harmed those close to her (like The Vision did when she attacked his wife the Scarlet Witch?) This would be interesting to see such a powerful hero with a wider gaze of right and wrong, and unsure guideline to follow, leading her to sometimes going toe to toe with the heroes. Part of the appeal of superhero comics is the colourful costumes and extraordinary powers, people doing incredible things and I personally feel she should become this new kind of hero who can embody these things and dislike superheroes despite being one. It would be something audiences haven’t scene and give her this self loathing but complicated relationship with herself, a duty to do what is right but hating herself for doing it. But perhaps this would make her less relatable, and the thing most people would really do is walk away from that style of life if all it does is let you down and disappoint you.

After such an engaging, original (apart from her typical power of strength, invulnerability and flight) character that has such a thought provoking and well written origin story and terrifying and unlikeable arch-villian, I would love to see Jessica Jones, and even Jewel, have a future series in the Marvel Universe, and with a Television show confirmed, that looks extremely possible. 

 Michael Bendis, B. (2008) Alias: Volume 4: The Secret Origin of Jessica Jones. New York: Marvel Comics, 2004.

Roz Kaveny (2008) Superheroes! Capes and Crusaders in Comics and Film I.B Tauris & Co Ltd. Great Britian

Michael Bendis, B. (2008) Alias: Volume 4: The Secret Origin of Jessica Jones. New York: Marvel Comics, 2004.

Healy, K. (2006) Available at: http://girl-wonder.org/papers/healey.html (Accessed on: 16/10/2014)